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Gilbert's Bedrock buys 2 more Capitol Park buildings, vacant lot

Photo by CoStar Group Inc.
The 42,000-square-foot building at 119 State St. at the corner of Shelby Street in Detroit was listed for $3 million.

Dan Gilbert bought two buildings and a 4,000-square-foot vacant lot for a new development in Detroit’s Capitol Park last month.

The 42,000-square-foot building at 119 State St. at the corner of Shelby Street was listed for $3 million, while the 10,000-square-foot Church Building at 45 W. Grand River Ave. at the corner of Griswold Street was listed for $1.5 million, according to Washington, D.C.-based real estate information service CoStar Group Inc.

Laura Biehl, public relations manager for Gilbert’s Rock Ventures LLC, declined to disclose the sale prices on the two buildings and vacant lot, which is located at 28 W. Grand River Ave. at the corner of Griswold.

She said exact plans for the buildings have yet to be developed.

Photo by CoStar Group Inc.
The 10,000-square-foot Church Building at 45 W. Grand River Ave. at the corner of Griswold Street in Detroit was listed for $1.5 million.

The six-story State Street building was constructed in 1887, according to Gilbert’s Bedrock Real Estate Services LLC. It is 17 percent leased, according to CoStar.

The five-story building on Grand River was constructed in 1895, according to Bedrock. It is 20 percent leased, according to CoStar.

The previous owner of both buildings was Detroit investor Dennis Kefallinos, who sold Gilbert the 70,000-square-foot Kresge Building at 1201 Woodward Ave. in December 2012.

In August, Gilbert purchased the 40,000-square-foot Bamlet Building at 1265 Griswold in Capitol Park from Kefallinos in a portfolio sale that also included the 48,000-square-foot building at 1505 Woodward Ave. for $1.1 million.

Gilbert’s real estate portfolio over the last four years has grown to about 50 buildings with more than 8 million square feet. Gilbert, the founder and chairman of Quicken Loans Inc. and Rock Ventures, has invested $1.3 billion buying and renovating the buildings, most of which are in the central business district.